


Jumping Jacks

by GalaxyAqua



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa: Another Episode
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Domestic Fluff, Multi, Polyamory, Post-Series, Team as Family, They're in their teens but they still act pretty childishly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-06
Updated: 2015-09-06
Packaged: 2018-04-19 09:06:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4740704
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GalaxyAqua/pseuds/GalaxyAqua
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>7 years after the Warriors of Hope disbanded; they've had to re-learn love and trust and respect. But that's okay. Because they're learning together. One step at a time, hand in hand. They've only got each other, after all.</p><p>AU where Nagisa, Masaru, Kotoko and Jataro live in the same house and get into all their little shenanigans as a team.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Jumping Jacks

**Author's Note:**

> idk?? this can be platonic friends, platonic family or polyamory - there is literally no line. I've drawn no line.  
> they just love each other and I want them to be happy (but I mean there's innocent little cheek kisses so take it as you will)
> 
> also standard warnings for warriors of hope stuff: namely, jataro's self-deprecation, everyone's hatred of adults, masaru and kotoko being a lil insensitive but it's ok because nagisa shingetsu exists and he is precious
> 
> it's rated gen because none of the really terrible stuff in dr:ae is mentioned dw

The door slams open, and Jataro jumps, rolling off the couch in fright. It’s only Masaru – of course it is, of the four of them he’s definitely the loudest – but even though the artist knows this, he doesn’t get up off the floor. Instead, he occupies himself with brushing some lint from the rug beneath him, and crawling under the coffee table.

Only a step into the house, Masaru cups his hands around his mouth and yells at the top of his voice: “I’m back! Is anyone home?”

Jataro shields his ears with his sleeves, and somewhere in the house Kotoko shrieks, “Shut up! I’m watching the _best_ part and you _ruined_ it!” – for now, that’s the only indication the redhead has of another human presence, so he laughs and shrugs off his jacket, kicking his shoes into a corner. One shoe collides with the bookshelf, sending a few thin volumes tumbling down, but Masaru ignores it, under the assumption that Nagisa would clean it up later.

From under the table, Jataro watches as Masaru barges into Kotoko’s room, and then as the athlete bursts into a fresh round of laughter at the girl’s expense. “Ah, you’re watching this silly movie, again? You’ve watched that a thou-sand times, Kotoko! All that stuff is _adult_ gar-bage!”

“Get ouuuuut,” Kotoko hisses, and something pink shoots out of the room and bounces off the door opposite. It’s one of Kotoko’s pink plush rabbits.

Though it didn’t hit anyone, the gesture prompts Masaru to flee from the actress’ room, and shout, “Ah! She’s out to get me! Even though I’m the leader!”  

Kotoko quickly emerges behind him, pink-hair fluttering out behind her, hot on the redhead’s trail. She fetches her rabbit and clutches onto it, before jeering at Masaru, “You’re the leader of _what_? If anyone’s the leader, it’s _me_!”

“Nuh-uh! We decided ages ago that I am the leader! So I – am – the – leader!”

Though they’ve started arguing, and Masaru is running from Kotoko’s wrath just like always, Jataro notes quietly that they are both grinning from ear-to-ear. He smiles a little to himself, brushing some sandy strands of hair from his face.  

He watches as they circle each other around the living room and dining area. Kotoko sends the fruit bowl rolling onto the floor as she tries to get to Masaru over the dinner table, whilst the redhead kicks a chair over trying to escape from her. Masaru vanishes momentarily from view, so Jataro assumes he is _on_ the coffee table, and curls himself into a ball beneath it, as to stay out of harms way.  

Masaru grabs a pillow from the couch to throw at his pursuer. Kotoko flies to the door to catch it. Coincidentally, while Kotoko heads for the door, it opens, and she crashes straight into Nagisa, who abruptly looks like he regrets walking in altogether. He catches her with practiced ease, but his stern expression does not let up. Masaru then decides he will throw two pillows at both of them for good measure. Nagisa frowns.

“What’s going on?” He asks. He settles Kotoko onto her feet and picks up the cushions, with the girl latching onto his arm as he does so. Nagisa hands her one, expecting her to put it back, but she sticks her tongue out and throws it at Masaru. Nagisa sighs. “Alright… should I even be asking?”

Immediately, Kotoko and Masaru point at each other, and say, “Well, they started it!”

“Does it matter? It’s not like either of you are actually angry.” Nagisa crosses his arms. “Seriously, you’re just making a mess. Who’s going to clean this up?”

Kotoko pulls her sweetest expression, and pecks him on the cheek before he can grumble any further. Her earnest magenta gaze makes him flush and glance away, as she asks, “You’ll do it, won’t you, Nagisa?”

He’s about to protest, when Masaru appears on his other side and mimics the actress’ actions – taking special delight in raising the blush in Nagisa’s face. “C’mon, don’t be such a _grown up_ , Nagisa. No-one cares about the mess, anyway!”

“Actually, I do. But I’ll let it slide for now.” Nagisa says, swatting the two pests away from him, pressing a palm to his heated forehead. His eyebrows furrow, when Masaru and Kotoko put their arms around him and high-five behind his back; amusement evident in their eyes. The blue-haired massages his temples, peering through the gaps in his fingers, only to spot something particularly out of the ordinary. “... more importantly, why is Jataro under the table?”

Both Kotoko and Masaru jump, swerving in the direction of the table and gasping.

“He wasn’t there, before!” Kotoko cries, with a hand over her mouth.

Suddenly noticing the attention on him, Jataro shrinks further under the table, pressing his sleeve-covered hands together. His blond head lowers itself onto the carpet, but his silver eyes remain trained on the trio by the doorway. “Aah… well, even if you forgot about me, I can understand. Someone as hated as me should just stay down here forever, after all. It’s okay. It’s not like I’m going to grow older just by lying here.”

Ignoring most of the artist’s spiel, Masaru presses a hand to his chest, and points at the blond with the other, as if personally offended, “Oi, Jataro! You didn’t greet me when I came home! Explain yourself!”

Nagisa opens his mouth as if to protest in Jataro’s place, but Kotoko beats him to it. “Oh, don’t bother asking him! He’ll take too long to answer, and you won’t understand a word of it, anyway!” Despite her words, Kotoko brightens immensely at the discovery of the blond’s hiding place, and adds, “Although, me and Jataro made cupcakes when you guys were out! Isn’t that surprising? Are you surprised? I can get them out and show you! They look super, duper good!”

Forgetting why he was offended in the first place, Masaru glances at Kotoko with a loud, “No way! Show me!” and she sticks her tongue out at him one last time before she unlatches from Nagisa and skips to the kitchen.

“If you have time to make cupcakes, then you have time to clean up after yourself.” Nagisa calls to her retreating back, but recoils from a sharp poke courtesy of Masaru.

“Shhh,” the redhead says, pressing a finger to his lips. “Just shhhhh. Nagisa. Shhhh. Don't speak. Just don't say anything. Shhh.”

Nagisa rolls his eyes at him and pokes him back. “I don’t know what you’re playing at, but I’m not buying it.”

“Shhhhhhhhh,” Masaru emphasizes, though a cheeky grin graces his face and Nagisa frowns again.

The blue-haired boy grabs onto Masaru's sleeve, dragging him further into the house with a sigh. “Alright. Whatever.” He says, using his free hand to tug off his shoes and place them on the shelf. “Come help me pull Jataro out from under the table.”

Masaru pouts, but he doesn’t complain, and the two of them crouch by the coffee table, peering under it at the same time. Not quite expecting the sudden proximity, Jataro flinches and hits his head on the table, eliciting a simultaneous look of sympathy from both the boys checking up on him.

“Yeesh,” Masaru begins, rubbing the back of his own neck. “You gotta find better places to hide, man! I mean, this is awesome for like a super spy or something – but you’re a warrior like the rest of us, Jataro! You gotta be like me, and stand bravely at the frontlines; ready for battle! Well, maybe not like me exactly, since no-one is as great as I am –”

“Ignore him,” interrupts Nagisa, tugging lightly on the sleeve hanging off the artist’s hidden hands. “Come on, you don’t want to hurt yourself again.”

“What do you _mean_ ignore me?!” The redhead shrieks indignantly, puffing out his cheeks. "Oi, Nagisa!"

True to his word, Nagisa ignores him, and gets down on his stomach, so he's facing Jataro directly. The blond shuffles backwards out of instinct, and Nagisa asks, "Can you get out yourself, or do you need me to help you?"

"Ahh, of course, I can do it myself! Even someone as worthless and ugly as I am can do something like that..." 

"Well! You're not _that_ worthless, so don't beat yourself up over it!" Masaru scratches his cheek awkwardly, trying to fill the silence as Nagisa ends up helping the artist out from under the table anyway. He dutifully does not comment on the blond's use of the word 'ugly', because the last time the athlete tried to battle that one out, he'd ended up accidentally confining Jataro to his room for an entire three days. What could he say? He had taken Jataro's word face-value even when the artist still wore his patchwork mask; and adjusting to his unmasked face had been a massive challenge, even for someone as brilliant as himself. 

"Careful," Nagisa chides, as Jataro almost hits his head on the table again. Despite the reluctance in the blond's expression, he still clings tight to Nagisa's arm, all the way until the boy pulls him out from under the table completely. 

He bows his head once he's out in the open, in a half-hearted attempt to conceal his face.

Nagisa exchanges a look with Masaru, and the athlete just shrugs. "You okay, Jata?" Masaru reaches out to ruffle his hair, at a loss of what else to do.

Jataro nods, and nudges his hand away, gazing off to the side with a quivering lip. 

Kotoko stands there, arms full of cupcakes, with her mouth open. She blinks twice, and tilts her head to the side. "Ehe... I was just waiting for you guys to finish! It's so funny when you're trying so hard! And now that it looks like you're done ... I have come bearing cupcakes!”

"Whoa, you weren't kidding!" Masaru shoots towards her, ready to shake off the awkward atmosphere at the drop of a pin, and steals one of the cupcakes, shoving it straight into his mouth, before saying, "Oh, god! These are so good, man, this is like, the best thing to come home to. You are officially my favorite person!"

"Ehe! Of course I am!" Kotoko smiles, before stepping towards the other two. "Here, Nagisa, you want one?"

Nagisa takes one hesitantly, nodding his thanks. He smiles, ever so slightly, as he inspects the cupcake in his hands. "These are very well done, I must admit."

"I'm glad you like them," she answers almost bashfully. After Masaru's nagging, she puts the tray onto the coffee table, and lets him go wild, before she takes a side-glance at Jataro, and pauses.

He smiles at her, waving his arms around. "Ah - don't worry about me! I made them with you, remember? Oh, but it's alright if you don't... because you hate me anyway, it doesn't make a difference."

Kotoko shakes her head, rich pink eyes wide, as she scans over Jataro's face. Nagisa and Masaru start to argue in the background, but a sudden rush of emotion flows into Kotoko's face, and she presses her hands to her cheeks, going “Kyaaa! I still can’t get over how adorable he is when he’s out in the open!” Her eyes narrow for a moment, as she says, “I can’t believe this is the same ol’ Snake-chan as before,” but then she’s back to flailing energetically, “He’s so cute I want to eat him up!”  

Nagisa clears his throat. “No-one is eating anyone around here. And stop that. You’re making him uncomfortable.”

Kotoko pouts, clearly not a fan of not being an angel in his eyes. She starts chanting, “Nagisa and Jataro, sitting in a tree – “

Jataro chokes and brings his sleeves to his face, whilst Nagisa winces, holding out a hand to stop Kotoko from continuing that thought, “H-hold on, Kotoko, I think you’re making Jataro cry – “

“Wahh!" She seems a little apologetic, so she quickly mends it with, "Um, how about Nagisa and _Masaru_ sitting in a tree – “

Mouth full of cupcake, Masaru says something incomprehensible. Nagisa sends Kotoko a deadpan look, and asks, “Why do I always have to be in it?”

“What?" Masaru swallows his food, a teasing tone entering his voice, "You wouldn’t kiss me, Nagisa?”

“That’s not what I’m saying." When they all look at him blankly, Nagisa sighs and tries to elaborate by adding, "I mean, not you, specifically. For example, what if I said Masaru and _Kotoko_ – “

“Ewww,” Kotoko intercepts. "Me and him? No, thank you!"

“Ewww, yourself!” Masaru puts his hands on his hips, blue eyes flitting to Kotoko as if betrayed. “Fine, then! Nagisa and Kotoko, sitting in a tree – “

“Seriously, why am I always in it…” Nagisa begins to just give up and go for shaking his head at everything. Kotoko frowns a little, and leans her head on top of Jataro's, because his height makes for a convenient resting platform.

Masaru backtracks, feeling as though he's lost the fight. "Then! Kotoko! And! Jataro!"

"I already told you to leave Jataro out of this..." Nagisa chimes in. 

"Masaru and Jataro," Kotoko concludes, running her fingers through the artist's fair hair, "Because they're both idiots."

"I said..."

"Nagisaaa," Masaru whines, stuffing his face with yet another cupcake. "Don't exclude him! We all get equal rights on the kissy tree - because I said so and I am the _leader_! Also, Kotoko has to take that back! I am not - an - idiot!"

"Sure you are!" She jibes. Nagisa sends her a knowing look. Kotoko shrinks a little, bending to hide behind Jataro. "W-what is that look supposed to mean?" 

"Uh..." the blond speaks up quietly, and they all turn towards him. "My opinion doesn't really matter, but all I got from that conversation was that everyone wants to kiss everyone else? It's not all that complicated. Unless I... missed something?"

There's a short stretch of silence.

Jataro speaks up again, rubbing at his eyes, "Never mind... I probably don't understand, after all. Ah... so disappointing... as expected of someone like me..."

"Well, no, you're not wrong!" Masaru admits eventually, his face contorted in confusion. "Aah! Being unsure is so uncool! A good leader always knows what's going on - so I'm going to say exactly what I think! I think that all that lovey-dovey stuff is for demons to worry about, and we can do whatever we want, because we're kids and we make our own rules!"

"That's right!" Kotoko puts her hands on her hips. "We can do whatever we want!" 

"That's a recipe for disaster." Nagisa remarks with amusement. "But it is what it is."

"I think if it's... all of us, then we can do anything. I always believed... in the shining hope that we were special. You, all, especially. Because you're still here. With me." Jataro adds, clapping his sleeved hands together. He blushes a little, not accustomed to saying nice things out loud. 

“Aw, I love you guys.” Kotoko giggles, pulling all four of them into a group hug with the best of her ability. Then, she sticks out her tongue, a dash of pink in her cheeks, and says almost like an afterthought, “… just kidding!”

“Just kidding?!” Masaru pushes her playfully, shaking his head with his nose in the air. “And here we were, about to have a moment! You totally ruined it, Kotoko!”

“You’re all morons.” Nagisa says, but a fond smile stretches across his lips, which he hasn’t the hands to hide.

Jataro mirrors his smile, and hides his face in Nagisa's shoulder - to which Masaru and Kotoko yell, "Not fair!" and they all practically pile on top of Nagisa anyway.

"Why?" Nagisa exclaims, and the trio laugh.

"Because we're - quote, unquote - 'all morons'!"

Morons that knew they'd be there for each other; come rain, hail or snow.

And for now, that's all that matters.


End file.
